What is a SWOT analysis and name three specific uses of it?

Answer 1

SWOT is an acronym for:

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

In a SWOT analysis, you analyse (break down) a situation by listing your strengths and weaknesses and look for opportunities that you can capitalize on, based on your goals; followed by highlighting any threats that you may encounter that could hinder you in achieving your goals.

3 Specific Uses of a SWOT Analysis

1. In Sports: A country participating in an Olympic event can do a SWOT analysis vis-a-vis their closest rival to come up with a game-plan.
2. In Career Planning: A SWOT analysis can help you take stock of your natural talents as well as deficit areas and help you maximize the impact of your strength while brushing up a bit on your negatives, so that they are not glaring. Assessing opportunities and threats will help you pitch for the right job or educational course (e.g. MBA).
3. In Macroeconomics: A detailed SWOT analysis performed by a country's government or economic planning authority can reveal how the country can capitalize on its natural and human resources and brace for adverse situations expected in the future (or from competitors); e.g. economic recession, rising oil prices, poor monsoons in countries with a large agriculture sector, economic sanctions imposed etc.

What is most important is that after a SWOT analysis is conducted, you should do the converse of an analysis; i.e. synthesis. No amount of analysis helps unless you put together all that information and come to a conclusion (synthesize). For example, after doing a SWOT analysis, a sporting country might decide to send only a small Olympic contingent that stands a good chance of winning medals, than a big one that is not likely to even get past qualifying rounds.